SKOCH Challenger Award – 2011

Given away by the hands of Dr C Rangarajan, Hon’ble Chairman, Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister on this 25th Day of March 2011 at New Delhi

A key figure in India’s economic reforms from the early 1980s onwards, Montek Singh Ahluwalia’s fingerprints can be found in policies in every sphere, ranging from economics to education reforms. He has been a driving force in the liberalization programme of the past 20 years or more. Having studied in St Stephen’s, this Oxford-educated economist as a Rhodes Scholar, has spent 11 years with the World Bank in Washington before returning to India in 1979 to work as an economic adviser to the government. After having been adviser to IMF as the first Director of the Independent Evaluation Office, he returned again to become Deputy Chairman, Planning Commission. Importantly, his work has shaped economic policy making in India. Decisions like broadbanding of licenses, deregulation, and several such measures were taken during his tenure as Finance Secretary leading the country on to a path of economic liberalization. His commitment to poverty alleviation and inclusive growth can be found in his early writings as long ago as 1970s and as Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission currently, he has managed to translate this into the country’s Plan process from the 11th Plan onwards. Team Skoch has observed his contributions since 2005 and has had the privilege of interacting with him ever since.

Banking: Ms Chanda Kochhar, Managing Director, ICICI Bank

Given away by the hands of Dr C Rangarajan, Hon’ble Chairman, Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister on this 25th Day of March 2011 at New Delhi

ICICI Bank under the stewardship of Chanda Kochhar is today signing up a million customers a month with a view that this is where the next generation of growth of India will come from. One of the few private banks to set high standards in innovative banking, ICICI Bank has created a host of propositions to spurt rural growth. From Core Banking Solutions to Mobile Banking and Biometric enabled Smart Cards, ICICI Bank has created opportunities of Micro Credit and Micro Savings for the rural poor. It has touched the lives of more than 450,000 customers across 18 states. “Inclusion must be accompanied by education, health facilities and safe drinking water”, believes Chanda Kochhar. Team Skoch has observed contributions made by Chanda Kochhar since 2004.

e-Governance: Mr Ravi S Saxena, Additional Chief Secretary, Gujarat

Given away by the hands of Dr C Rangarajan, Hon’ble Chairman, Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister on this 25th Day of March 2011 at New Delhi

Ravi Saxena believes that the power of information actually needs to be spread to the people at the bottom as it is this that will ensure that the intended benefits actually reach them. He developed deep insights into the potential of ICT in the government domain following his various postings in Gujarat State and the Central Government. He has made persistent efforts at deploying computing in the applications of the government with a view to bringing greater efficiency and transparency. Ravi Saxena, Additional Chief Secretary, Gujarat, is now leading the most e-governed State in India with ICT having reached the Gram Panchayat level. Team Skoch has visited and studied several initiatives like e-Gram, HMIS, GSWAN, Police Computerisation and Municipality Computerisation in Gujarat.

NRLM - Jeevika: Ms Anup Mukerji, Chief Secretary, Government of Bihar

Given away by the hands of Dr C Rangarajan, Hon’ble Chairman, Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister on this 25th Day of March 2011 at New Delhi

Bihar’s rural livelihood project also known as Jeevika has helped create self-managed community institutions of participating households, enhance income through sustainable livelihood and increased access to social protection including food security. Started in 2007 with support from the Government of Bihar and the World Bank for poverty alleviation, the focus is on a demand driven approach for community participation and ownership. It is today considered a model programme both in terms of implementation and outcomes. Team Skoch recently visited Nalanda to study and document the project.

Given away by the hands of Dr C Rangarajan, Hon’ble Chairman, Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister on this 25th Day of March 2011 at New Delhi

Punjab National Bank has demonstrated how the rural poor, a hitherto excluded class, can be pulled into the mainstream by a little innovation. To offer financial services to the customers residing in rural areas with no banking channels available to them, PNB initiated and developed a technology-enabled model with biometric features to offer banking products at their doorstep. This model also supports interoperability across the Bank, meaning that customers can avail financial services from any PNB Business Correspondent, from anywhere across the country. Team Skoch has visited and studied several projects including Farmers’ Training Colleges, Banking Correspondent, Banking Facilitator at Tineri - Bihar, SHGs, Milk-Mitra Project, and Varanasi Cycle Rickshaw Project.

Given away by the hands of Dr C Rangarajan, Hon’ble Chairman, Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister on this 25th Day of March 2011 at New Delhi

For unhesitatingly supporting us in the journey to inclusion – social, digital and financial – Canon has walked baby steps with us in our quest for inclusive growth. Canon has encouraged us throughout our journey and supported our efforts to make complex analysis of social and development issues accessible to a wide audience of policymakers. It was during the first Skoch Summit that we had said Canon would be a market leader in what it does and we are pleased to see that come true in ways more than one. They have grown with us and seen us grow as well.

Given away by the hands of Dr C Rangarajan, Hon’ble Chairman, Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister on this 25th Day of March 2011 at New Delhi

For unhesitatingly supporting us in the journey to inclusion – social, digital and financial – ABM Knowledgeware has walked in step with us in our quest for inclusive growth. During the first Skoch Summit we had forecast that Kalyan Dombivli Municipal Corporation (KDMC) implementation, which was painstakingly put together by ABM, would be a successful role model to be replicated by several municipalities across the country, including Municipal Corporation Greater Mumbai (MCGM) and New Delhi Municipal Corporation (NDMC). It is a happy moment to see that ABM has come a long way since then. They have grown with us and seen us grow as well.

Given away by the hands of Dr C Rangarajan, Hon’ble Chairman, Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister on this 25th Day of March 2011 at New Delhi

Many satellite cities have come up across the country but very few have grown in stature the way Gurgaon has. It is a true reflection of the spirit of public-private-partnership. The government laid the ground rules and had the courage and wisdom to let market forces do the rest. Gurgaon has the 3rd highest per capita income in India after Chandigarh and Mumbai. While every growing city has its infrastructural problems and Gurgaon is no exception, it is to the credit of the Bhupinder Singh Hooda government that Gurgaon is gaining ground as a hi-tech city at a fast pace. Gurgaon has now emerged the best city in India to work and live in. Team Skoch has been part of the millennium city development story starting with the Biodiversity Park, Project Hope, Sanitation, Solid Waste and Traffic Management for several years.

Economics: Mr N K Singh, Hon’ble Member, Rajya Sabha

Given away by the hands of Dr C Rangarajan, Hon’ble Chairman, Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister on this 25th Day of March 2011 at New Delhi

N K Singh has been the face of reforms in India. He studied Economics at Delhi School of Economics and then taught at St Stephen’s, subsequently joining the IAS. He has held senior positions in the IAS, such as Principal Secretary to the PM, Revenue Secretary, Expenditure Secretary and Finance Secretary and went on to become a Member of the Planning Commission. Earlier, he also served at the Indian Embassy in Tokyo. Having completed a career in bureaucracy, N K Singh joined Parliament as an MP in the Rajya Sabha. Since his original cadre was Bihar, it is understandable that N K Singh should go on to become Deputy Chairman of Bihar’s State Planning Board, driving Bihar’s reforms and high growth. He oversaw a rise in public investment from around Rs 4,000 crore in 2004-05 to Rs 21,000 crore last year. Within this, there has been a 2.5 times increase in the Plan outlay. This has resulted in Bihar growing over 12 per cent on an average over the last five years. The result is that there has been a sea change in the perception of Bihar’s image, which is further emboldened to continue with its development strategies. Team Skoch has known him and observed his contributions since 2010.

Grassroots Work: Mr Mani Shankar Aiyer, Hon’ble Member, Rajya Sabha

Given away by the hands of Dr C Rangarajan, Hon’ble Chairman, Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister on this 25th Day of March 2011 at New Delhi

Mani Shankar Aiyar is identified with the advent of Panchayati Raj in India. He was born in Lahore and studied at St Stephen’s College and Trinity Hall, Cambridge. He joined the Indian Foreign Service and served in Prime Minister’s Office, when Rajiv Gandhi was the Prime Minister. He resigned from the IFS and joined politics in 1989. As Minister for Panchayati Raj and otherwise, Mani Shankar Aiyar has consistently espoused the cause of grassroots involvement and participatory democracy. Aiyar was instrumental in organizing seven Round Tables of State Panchayati Raj Ministers that finally resulted in signing of MoUs with state governments, getting them to pledge support to the Panchayati Raj apparatus. That, till date, remains the driving agenda. It was under his direction that a far-reaching report recommending a roadmap for computerization of PRIs was completed. The ministry got a boost when Panchayats were given the responsibility of selecting works under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme. It was Aiyar who persuaded the Planning Commission to make it mandatory to consult Panchayats while preparing district-level plans during the 11th Plan. Team Skoch has worked closely and observed Aiyar since 2004.

RSBY: Ms Sudha Pillai, Hon’ble Member Secretary, Planning Commission

Given away by the hands of Dr C Rangarajan, Hon’ble Chairman, Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister on this 25th Day of March 2011 at New Delhi

For people living below the poverty line, an illness not only represents a permanent threat to their income earning capacity, in many cases it could also result in the family falling into a debt trap. The Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana (RSBY), a social security fund for unorganised sector workers, numbering millions, is the brainchild of Sudha Pillai - who post-recession found that many of them had got laid off and despite being highly skilled, were not able to earn adequate wages. So much so, that many were withdrawing their children from school. The Labour Ministry has now mooted that beedi workers also come under the RSBY health insurance scheme. Today there are 23.2 million card-holders. But she is not one to rest on her achievements and is now working for a nationally mandated minimum wage so that contract workers are not denied social security. Team Skoch has observed her contributions since 2004 when she was Additional Secretary in the newly formed Ministry of Panchayati Raj.

Technology: Mr O P Bhatt, Chairman, State Bank of India

Given away by the hands of Dr C Rangarajan, Hon’ble Chairman, Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister on this 25th Day of March 2011 at New Delhi

With 13,363 branches, 25,000 ATMs and over 200,000 employees, the State Bank of India is India’s largest commercial bank with one of the largest core-banking installations worldwide. SBI recognised technology as a tool to make it more customer-focused, to ensure customer retention and to enhance customer acquisition. None other than its Chairman O P Bhatt has motivated this focus at the State Bank of India. The bank has applied technology to have a competitive edge over the private banks, make operations more efficient, to reach the unbanked and spur economic growth. Team Skoch has observed O P Bhatt since 2004 - when he was Chief General Manager, North East.

Given away by the hands of Dr C Rangarajan, Hon’ble Chairman, Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister on this 25th Day of March 2011 at New Delhi

Devaki Jain was born in Mysore and studied at Oxford University; she taught at Delhi University during her early years. She is a development economist and activist on gender issues. She has been a member of many policy task forces and working groups with the Government of India to establish programmes for women’s economic empowerment. As a women’s rights activist, she was one of the founding members of Development Alternatives for Women of a New Era (DAWN) and the Indian Association of Women’s Studies (IAWS). She was one of two women who were awarded the Bradford Morse Memorial Award by the United Nations for promoting the advancement of women for over 20 years.

Development Banking: Mr K G Karmakar, Managing Director, NABARD

Given away by the hands of Dr C Rangarajan, Hon’ble Chairman, Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister on this 25th Day of March 2011 at New Delhi

With 13,363 branches, 25,000 ATMs and over 200,000 employees, the State Bank of India is India’s largest commercial bank with one of the largest core-banking installations worldwide. SBI recognised technology as a tool to make it more customer-focused, to ensure customer retention and to enhance customer acquisition. None other than its Chairman O P Bhatt has motivated this focus at the State Bank of India. The bank has applied technology to have a competitive edge over the private banks, make operations more efficient, to reach the unbanked and spur economic growth. Team Skoch has observed O P Bhatt since 2004 - when he was Chief General Manager, North East.